Now that our organization is no longer investigating reports of animal cruelty, there has been some confusion on whom to call when people have concerns about an animal’s welfare. If you suspect cruelty or neglect of a pet, your first call should be to your local police department. At that point, the initial response will probably be handled by the municipality’s animal control officer (ACO), and either corrected or turned over to a police officer if prosecution is required. The Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office along with our state and local police departments are working hard to meet the demands of this new caseload. It will require an adjustment period as these agencies must receive training in regards to the statutes and acquire knowledge and assistance with pet health issues.

The ACOs in Cumberland and Salem counties are experienced professionals in companion animal welfare and laws. Although they do not have, and have not had, the authority to enforce animal cruelty laws, they have the knowledge to handle the preliminary stages of an investigation and call in the necessary powers. They are also responsible for laws and ordinances pertaining to licensing, animals running at large, bite cases, and lost and found pets.

In the past few weeks, there have been a couple of cases that involved pets that were found and assumed by their finders to be victims of neglect – two skinny dogs, to be exact. In one case, the dog was taken to a vet by the finder, where it was determined to be old and sickly. The ACO was called and the dog was transported from the vet’s office to South Jersey Regional Animal Shelter with a load of medications. Within an hour of arriving at the shelter, the owner had been identified and had proof that the dog was already under veterinary care. It was unfortunate that the dog had to go through being lost, found, taken to the vet and taken to the shelter before he made it home, but in the long run, the system worked.

In the second case, a dog was found and plastered all over social media as being skinny and in bad shape. The posts were forwarded to the ACO, who then instructed the finder to provide the address where it could be picked up or to take the dog to the shelter themselves the following morning. A day went by … no dog, no call. Two days went by … no dog, no call. The ACO was also blocked from the social media site of the finder. In the meantime, the owner had called in a lost report, but the ACO had no information on the finder. It turned out that the owner had recently acquired the dog and actually had been working to address his weight and health issues. For four days, the ACO investigated the identity of the finder and was able to locate the individual, who then lied by stating that the dog had run off and was no longer in their possession. At that point, a police officer had to get involved because the owner had gone to the police station and made a potential theft report. In this case, it took the threat of arrest in order to have the dog reunited with the owner.

To sum this all up, please keep these few things in mind:

Call your local police department to report suspected cases of animal cruelty or neglect. Do not take matters into your own hands.

Pets are considered property. You can be charged with theft if you keep a stray without going through the proper channels.

The current enforcement system for animal cruelty laws is new in the state of New Jersey. It will take time for things to be ironed out and handled smoothly.

The animals still need you to be their advocate and their voice. Don’t hesitate to call the shelter if you need advice or assistance in helping an animal in need.

After several months of frustration and anticipation, we are very pleased that our former governor signed into law a bill that moves the enforcement of animal cruelty laws away from the New Jersey SPCA and into the county prosecutor’s offices. This is a much-needed advancement in the protection of domestic animals that, quite frankly, was decades overdue.Our society in Cumberland County received its charter as a county branch of the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in 1915. Perhaps, more than 100 years ago, the system of having a charitable organization of volunteers was adequate to respond to reports of animal cruelty and neglect – but certainly not in today’s world.

When I first became involved with the Cumberland County SPCA back in the 1980s, almost every report of cruelty or neglect that we received involved a skinny dog, a dog without water or a dog without shelter. Rarely, if ever, did our agents need to have a police escort into any of our neighborhoods; it was a very different time. The nature of abuses that the animals suffer has become more heinous. By the mid-1990s, we saw dogs being hanged in a city park and drowned in weighted crates in the river, and an incredible rise of the popularity of dogfighting and cockfighting throughout the county. The perpetrators have become violent and there often are other concerns, such as weapons and drugs, on the properties to which we respond. The cases are much more complicated to prosecute, and the streets much more dangerous for our investigators.More: Fanucci keys on business in State of the City addressMore: Juvenile uninjured after crashing school busThe new law requires the county prosecutor to establish “within the office of the prosecutor, a county prosecutor animal cruelty task force which would be responsible for animal welfare within the jurisdiction of the county, and enforce and abide by the animal cruelty laws of the state.” It also requires all municipalities to have a humane law enforcement officer properly commissioned to enforce the cruelty laws.

The transition of enforcement powers from the SPCAs to the prosecutors must be achieved within the next six months, but it will certainly take much longer to educate the new enforcers and to establish an effective and committed task force. We hope to work with our own county prosecutor’s office to make the transition as smooth as possible.

As far as the big picture for our organization is concerned, the only major difference is that we will not be responding to reports of cruelty once the transition has been made. We will, however, continue to act as advocates for the pets in our community as well as for our residents that need help with animal-related issues. Our shelter and clinic services will continue without interruption.2017 was a very difficult and trying year for us, both as the South Jersey Regional Animal Shelter and as the Cumberland County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. And 2018 promises to be challenging as well. But with the changes in law enforcement and new contracts being negotiated with the municipalities whose stray animals we house, we are hopeful that it will be a year of growth and progress. Through all of the trials and tribulations of the past year, your voice has been invaluable in helping us secure our future. We want to thank all of you who have supported us by communicating with our local and state government officials on our behalf.

Well, last week certainly was interesting – first in terms of animal sheltering in Cumberland and Salem counties, and then animal cruelty law enforcement in New Jersey.The State Commission of Investigation report on the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was dismal on all counts. Although we received our initial charter from them back in the 1940s, we are a completely separate entity and are not a subject of those findings. The SCI has suggested that enforcement powers should be placed in the hands of animal control officers (ACOs) that work under the auspices of police or health departments. The Legislature will have to decide how to move forward to ensure that the enforcement powers are in the hands of trained people with the resources and oversight necessary to meet the extreme demands of animal cruelty investigations in today’s world.

There is no simple answer, but it’s time for some serious consideration from the state of New Jersey on these matters. If the state and county SPCAs are to remain in charge of upholding these laws, they must be properly organized and overseen as all other law enforcement entities in the state are. They must be afforded the resources to properly investigate and prosecute when necessary. They cannot remain in this blurred atmosphere of being a nonprofit, volunteer organization and an instrumentality of the government at the same time.More: Here’s why the SPCA shelter can’t survive

If the SPCAs are disbanded, it’s not just a simple matter of having animal control officers take over their duties. Unless counties provide county-run animal control for their cities, many municipalities contract out with private ACOs. These private contractors do not fall under the police or health departments, and would therefore not meet the criteria suggested in the SCI report. Counties and cities that provide animal control, such as Gloucester and Vineland, would need to have their ACOs go through training for humane law enforcement and would most probably need to increase the number of officers they have available. Humane law enforcement officers (HLEOs) work long days conducting investigations as well as time spent preparing and going to court. It can’t be accomplished on an 8-to-4 basis, and there would also need to be an HLEO on call for emergencies.

In the case of humane law enforcement, the state of New Jersey has failed to step up to enforcing today’s standards of protecting our animals by leaving a system in place that has not been changed since its inception during the mid-1800s. In the case of our South Jersey Regional Animal Shelter, we need our local government entities to take some responsibility and reflect the compassionate nature of our residents that have put them in office. No matter how or what happens, it will take money to address the needs and protections of our animals; perhaps that’s why these things haven’t been properly dealt with in the past. Ya think?

Needless to say, it has been a tumultuous few days since the announcement of the cessation of our sheltering services at the Cumberland County SPCA the end of the year. Years of struggle have come before this decision was reached. As is normal for any nonprofit organization, we’ve always fought to make ends meet, but we’ve always managed to stay true to our mission. As is the case with so many things, the rules and regulations that govern our industry have become so overwhelming that the concentration on administrative requirements saps our resources. Taking funds away from animal care to pay for pushing paperwork undermines our very mission.Many people, because of our name, think that we are county-funded when, in fact, the county contributes only $20,000; that accounts for 1.5 percent of our annual expenses, which is basically a travel allowance for our cruelty investigations van. Other than that, the only money we receive from any government entities are the per-animal fees that the municipalities pay for their stray animals. These fees cover the cost of the strays for their seven-day holding period only. Then the burden of costs is completely on us. We often have cats and dogs for weeks and months, and they usually require veterinary care that we must provide as well.

In the late 1800s, the Cumberland County Society for the Protection of Children and Animals was formed as a nonprofit. In the late 1940s, we were chartered by the state as a volunteer nonprofit organization with the power to enforce animal cruelty laws. This has always been an odd situation, and has become increasingly challenging over time.

When I first started at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals shelter 30 years ago, every cruelty case involved a dog without shelter, a dog without water or a dog that was too skinny.

Now, animals are fought for entertainment, hanged in the city park and drowned in the river; the areas that our investigators are sent to are often gang-infested and dangerous.The shelter, on the other hand, has gone from a little old house with tacked-on additions to a nicely equipped building that can accommodate hundreds of animals. Our euthanasia rate has dropped 59 percent in the past three years alone, and we are well within reach in a few short years of euthanizing only in cases of severe aggression or dire illness.But now, the court has decided that we are an instrumentality of the government that requires us to perform as a public agency. Our county freeholders recognize us as a nonprofit that they cannot subsidize. The New Jersey State Investigations Commission also proclaimed us a volunteer-run nonprofit in their assessment of state and county SPCAs. So what the heck are we?

We are a necessary provider of care for thousands of homeless animals every year. We are an organization that works diligently to prevent all forms of animal cruelty and prosecute those who would deny innocent animals a safe and cared-for existence. We are a group of dedicated, compassionate people desperately trying to turn the tide of unnecessary euthanasia of unwanted pets.Unfortunately, we have come to the point where our very mission has been threatened by the burden of regulatory and adjudicated decisions. The new responsibilities and liabilities are beyond our means. Without the resources to continue high standards of animal care and placement, we simply cannot continue our sheltering operations.

So what can YOU do to help?

Let your voice be heard, let the powers that be know that this is a matter of the utmost importance and that you expect their help. Below is a sample letter that you can edit or add your own thoughts to & then email to your local representatives. Many of their email addresses are in the table to the right for your use.

I am a concerned citizen and am very troubled by the potential loss of our shelter which cares for thousands of stray and homeless pets on an annual basis. The citizens of our local communities also desperately need the important services such as low cost spay/neuter and vaccine clinics that the CCSPCA/SJRAS offers. For more than 70 years they alone have shouldered the burden of providing refuge for animals in need, assisting pet owners with necessary services and acting as a resource for any animal related issues.

The welfare of the animals is a community responsibility of vital importance as well as a quality of life issue and a matter of public safety. As an elected representative of our area, I ask that you do everything in your power to ensure the continuation of these crucial services by supporting the South Jersey Regional Animal Shelter with whatever resources are necessary to continue these essential services.

If you would prefer to print and mail a letter to officials, the same sample letter is available for download below, and mailing addresses are in the far right column of the table.

VINELAND – The Cumberland County SPCA plans to close its doors as an animal impound/shelter at the end of the year, if they don’t get some financial help, Bev Greco, the agency’s executive director, told The Daily Journal on Thursday.Letters are going out to 19 municipalities in Cumberland and Salem counties that have animal services contracts with the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals with notifications that the contracts, expiring Dec. 31, will not be renewed.“I don’t know what else to do,” Greco said.A “perfect storm” of court rulings and health code changes increased costs to the point where the SPCA is unable to operate as a shelter, Greco said. However, they will continue their law enforcement animal cruelty duties.When contacted Thursday, Cumberland County Freeholder Director Joe Derella said the board was briefly updated about the SPCA’s financial situation a couple months ago.

“We were unaware that they were at this point that they are actually going to be closing their doors,” he said. The shelter is facing closure. Derella said he planned to reach out to county administrator Ken Mecouch and county legal adviser Ted Baker.“We need to have a conversation with the SPCA, in regards to where they are at,” he said.

The state Superior Courts in Monmouth and Gloucester ruled SPCAs are public agencies, despite their nonprofit status, Greco said, explaining this puts them in a financial gray area. SPCAs are now charged with the additional responsibilities and liabilities of being a “public agency” but they can’t request funding for that because they are still “nonprofit,” she said. Greco noted she can’t anticipate what the budget increases will total because “I don’t know what I don’t know,” noting several of the changes came down in June.Devoting SPCA funds to increasing administrative costs rather than to direct animal care “defeats the purpose,” Greco said. The shelter, which has served the area for more than 70 years, takes in about 4,500 to 5,200 animals each year.

Believing the court decisions are incorrect, Greco said the local SPCA does not have the resources to challenge the rulings.“We can’t sit here and bleed to death,” she said. “We had to make a decision, if we can’t do sheltering right — if we have to sacrifice being able to save animals — then we can’t continue; it goes against our mission.”When the shelter closes Dec. 31, the SPCA will continue to care for the animals in their custody until they are placed. They will not take in any more animals, including those from the public.What will happen next, Greco said she does not know.“The county and the municipalities are going to have to come up with a plan for that,” she said.That’s the fundamental issue, she said, “they sympathize but they haven’t stepped up to the plate.”“This is a community responsibility and the local governments are going to have to figure out a way to handle the future of animals,” she said.

Derella told The Daily Journal that the freeholder board “never received a formal request to subsidize anything.”The county does annually contribute $20,000 to the SPCA for animal cruelty investigations.Should the shelter close, Derella said, it would “significantly” impact the municipalities that use it as an impound center.“If there is no more shelter here, they may have to go to a private vendor or out-of-county, at least that is the way it was described to us,” he said.The freeholders do not have specifics about the shelter’s operations and budget, Derella said.“We’ve got to have some communications with the SPCA board of directors to see what the potential avenues could be,” he said. “I don’t know legally where we can go from a nonprofit standpoint.”What would prevent other nonprofits that provide services to residents requesting county funding, Derella said. “Whe

Harvey, Irma, Maria – as if the situation for homeless animals wasn’t bad enough, three major hurricanes hitting the U.S. and Puerto Rico in less than a month is having a have a major impact on stray and shelter animals in those hard-hit areas, as well as repercussions throughout the country.Puerto Rico has a horrendous problem with overpopulation of companion animals. In the most recent estimate, there were approximately 300,000 stray dogs and a million stray cats fighting for survival on the streets and beaches. The island is approximately the size of Connecticut and has (or had … who knows now?) only five small, ill-equipped, poorly funded shelters. I shudder to think of what the island animals have been going through during their brush with Irma and now the full wrath of Maria.

The flooding and ensuing disease will surely mean a terrible death for a large number of these dogs and cats. The island has suffered such catastrophic damage that it has prevented relief organizations from assessing the situation as of yet. Further complicating the rescue efforts is the fact that those disaster response groups are already stretched to their limit because of Harvey and Irma.

Rescue groups have been bringing shelter animals up from the South and distributing them to northern shelters in hopes of finding them homes. This requires a tremendous effort, which comes with major expense and some disease-control issues. Getting the animals to safety is only half the battle; then they must be vaccinated, treated for any medical concerns, quarantined for a while to make sure they are healthy and, finally, found homes. This means disaster relief organizations and the receiving shelters will need support during this heroic effort.It’s hard not to be touched by the pictures of the animals who are the victims of these events, and many people will be moved to adopt one of them. If you are so inclined, I want to remind you to make sure any animals that currently share your home are fully vaccinated, including the less common canine influenza vaccine for dogs. Canine influenza is relatively new and scarce in our part of the country, but may be brought in by dogs entering the state from more affected areas. Any time you bring a new animal from any source into your fold, you should bring your other pets up-to-date on vaccines. Your veterinarian should be consulted for advice on preventive care for both vaccines and parasite treatments. On that same note, please keep in mind that Oct. 21 is the last low-cost vaccine clinic of the year at the South Jersey Regional Animal Shelter.

Let’s hope that the Atlantic Ocean is tapped out for this hurricane season. I think we’ve all had enough of watching these disasters unfold on The Weather Channel!

Our Fourth of July weekend started out with a real bang here at the South Jersey Regional Animal Shelter! I think I must have jinxed myself as I was sitting at my desk last Wednesday, thinking that I might take off on Friday and enjoy an elongated holiday – maybe go to the beach or enjoy the pool while the weather is right for it. No sooner had the thought crossed my mind when the animal control officer from Bridgeton called my cellphone with a frantic “I need help!”Apparently he was standing in the midst of 30 to 40 dogs on two adjacent properties, and the owners wanted to give up the majority of them because they were in violation of city ordinances and were simply overwhelmed in general. Some of the dogs were in kennels, some in crates, some tied up and others in a fenced-in area. It was near the end of the day and our kennels were nearly full to capacity, so my first question for the ACO was whether the dogs needed to be removed immediately. Although there were some violations, he felt as though the dogs were in no immediate danger and

could wait until we could remove them in an organized manner that would allow us to prepare for the deluge.

Given the fullness of our kennels, I knew that we would need help from one of our shelter partners. Plans were then put into place for St. Hubert’s Animal Welfare

Center to come down and take up to 20 of the dogs back to their shelter up in Morris County. On Friday morning, our shelter staff rolled out with the ACO and removed 25 of the 35 dogs as well as two cats. Each house kept five dogs, which is the legal limit in the city. A date also was set to spay and neuter the dogs remaining on the properties.

As the ACO had described, the dogs were contained in

various ways, none of which was quite up to standards. They were all of good weight but it was obvious that they were flea-infested and, as we later confirmed, intestinal parasites as well. Some had hair loss from flea allergies, and those that required grooming were seriously in need of a “spa day."

If there is a silver lining to this, it is that all the dogs are young and small. About half of them are Chihuahua or Chihuahua mixes, and the others are mostly Havanese mixes. Staff from St. Hubert’s arrived within minutes of our arrival back at the shelter and took 13 of dogs back to their beautiful shelter in Madison.The poor pups were pretty terrified the day we brought them in, but we were able to handle them on their respective properties so they should settle in just fine once we get them calmed down and feeling safe. They are truly adorable, and we hope to have them available for adoption later this week. You can see video of the rescued pets on our website at southjerseyregionalanimalshelter.org.

Sometimes we get lucky enough in life to have a “heart dog” enter our lives. Heart dogs are the dogs that fill a place inside you – a hole that you may not have even known needed to be filled. It’s the dog who is your constant through life’s hills and valleys, and the dog who brought something special to life that no other animal, or person, could. This is very difficult to explain, but if you have had a heart dog, you will know exactly what I am attempting to describe. Recently, one of our staff members lost his heart dog, a dog that he rescued in every sense of the word. I have worked in animal shelters for 15 years, and the story of George and Golden Boy is one of the most beautiful, touching partnerships I have encountered. I can only hope that I do justice in telling their story.

Golden Boy, a 9-year-old pit bull, was rescued by Cumberland County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals cruelty agents from an abusive and terribly neglectful situation. Although he was skeletally thin, he was found secured to by a heavy chain, huddled on the hard dirt ground. When he arrived at the shelter, he was emaciated, weak and sick.One particular staff member, George, felt a strong draw to Golden Boy from the day he arrived. As Golden Boy became stronger, he became reactive to almost everyone and would bark aggressively in his kennel. He was impossible to handle. He had so few good experiences with humans to draw from that he found it too difficult to trust most people. The exception to this mistrust was George.

George continued to spend lots of time with Golden Boy, and their bond grew. Golden Boy, unfortunately, had to stay in the shelter for months while his case progressed through the justice system. When the case concluded successfully, George knew that Golden Boy needed a place to go. His behavior made him unadoptable and he couldn’t stay at the shelter. The bond was already so strong that George committed to doing whatever needed to be done so that he and Golden Boy could stay together. He built a gorgeous, heated and cooled kennel for Golden Boy and took him home. Remarkably, Golden Boy quickly adjusted to his kennel and was doing so well that he was brought into the house and became part of the family. He made a flawless transition to being a beloved house dog, even enjoying his Chihuahua brothers.

About a year ago, Golden Boy was diagnosed with prostate cancer. We utilized funds from a Grey Muzzle Organization grant for senior dogs to extend his time and keep him comfortable. The extra months that Golden Boy and George had together were a blessing. Knowing that Golden Boy’s time on earth was coming to a close, George filled their everyday together with love and fun.In March, Golden Boy passed away, with George at his side. I know how incredibly difficult his loss was and how he has been missed every day since. George is a man of few words, but sometimes a few words are all that’s needed to convey a big message.

I asked him how he and Golden Boy connected.“Why did Golden Boy and I click? We both needed one another at the time we met. He saved my life and I saved his!”

I’m not really sure how to tell this story because many of the details are sketchy at best. The upshot is that the South Jersey Regional Animal Shelter ended up with 24 Chihuahuas needing new homes. I’ll start at the beginning, and I apologize in advance for any unanswered questions or confusion.A couple of weeks ago, a woman walked into the Bridgeton police station asking for help because she had 50 Chihuahuas at her rental house and she was afraid she was going to get evicted. The animal control officer in turn called our Cumberland County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals investigator, and so the odyssey began …

When the officers arrived on the property, they were told that some of the dogs were in the house, some had been given away that morning and some might be riding around in a U-Haul truck with an elderly lady. Apparently the dogs had been transported from Georgia within the previous 24 hours. They had lived down there at the house of a man who was moving to the rental property in Bridgeton. When the dogs arrived at the house up here, the legal renter panicked, knowing that she was violating her lease and certainly would be evicted if the landlord found out. The owner of the dogs had gone to work that day and the renter had become desperate to remove the dogs before everybody involved ended up out on the street.After three hours of waiting for the owner of the dogs to get home and determining what could be done, our investigator decided to impound the dogs until the owner either had a suitable place for them to go or to decide to release them to us. There were 14 dogs in the house at that time; the fate of the others, or even how many others there actually were, was a mystery.

After having no contact from the owner, I called him a few days later to tell him that he had to make a decision. After a long discussion and a lot of emotional upheaval, he decided to release the dogs so that they could be re-homed. At that point, he also mentioned that there were “three or four” others that he might need our help with as well. I told him that this would not be a problem and to please call me as soon as possible to make arrangements for the last few dogs.A few days later, I receive a call from a concerned person that the owner had rounded up the dogs that initially were given away and that he had 17 living in his vehicle. So, we rounded up the troops, grabbed a bunch of crates and went back out to the property. Sure enough, there in the backyard was an SUV with a bunch of Chihuahuas occupying every seat and compartment in the vehicle.Due to a shorthanded situation at the shelter that day, I got to get out from behind my desk to go to the property myself. And I can honestly say that, in spite of the ridiculousness of the situation, the dogs were fat and happy, the vehicle was free of urine or feces, and the owner was genuinely distraught about being unable to provide for his pups. It took a little negotiating, but eventually the dogs were released to us except for the oldest four which went to live with family members.

The dogs have been here at the shelter for the past couple of weeks. We had to hold them for two weeks because they had come across state lines without proper vaccines. The holding period is up and we’re now able to start placing them in new homes. They are all a little scared here at the shelter, but I have faith that they just need some TLC and patience. They have been through a horrendous ordeal – taken from their home, shipped here in the back of a U-Haul, separated from their pack, separated from their human companions and now stuck in a shelter for two weeks. There were four tiny pups and a few that were 3 to 4 months old; they will fly out of here. The others are all relatively young, but I worry that everyone will just want the babies. I hope you’ll be motivated to come check them out. They really need a best friend now.

The Cumberland County SPCA was the beneficiary of “Love a Pet,” a volunteer project at Millville High School. Students made toys for the dogs and cats at the shelter. They also donated food. Principal Stephanie DeRose delivered the donations to the SPCA.